B. TECH.

VIII SEM I MID TERM EXAMINATION SOLUTION

BRANCH: ELECTRICAL SUB. CODE: 8EE1A
SUBJECT: EHV AC/DC Transmission TIME ALLOWED: 2 Hours

Q1. Why EHV transmission is preferred and what are the problems involved in EHV AC transmission?(8
marks)

Ans:- One of the key concerns in the transmission of electricity is the power loss in transmission lines,
dissipated as heat due to the resistance of the conductors.
High-voltage transmission lines are used to transmit electric power over long distances. Normally, high
voltage (HV) transmission power lines are made of high voltage (between 138 and 765 kilovolts)
conducting lines of copper and/or aluminum.
Assume the power to be transmitted is P, and the resistance of the transmission line is r.
If the power is transmitted with voltage V, then the current flow through the transmission line is I=P/V.
The power loss Ploss=I2*r=(P/V)2*r
Since P and r are fixed conditions, less power will be lost if high voltages V are used.
Some students will raise questions like: From Ohm's law. if the voltage is increased, the current will
increase ,too. Why is the current smaller when high voltage is used to transmit the power.
Textbooks forgot to tell students that the transmission line needs a transformer to step down the voltage.
And the transformer does not have a fixed impedance. If higher voltage is used to transmit the power,
the ratio of the transformer will also change which will change the impedance of the transformer.
The following applet was developed to help you understand the high power transmission line.
You can change the Power/Voltage V and resistance r in the transmission line with sliders.
I will show current flow through the transmission line.
Z is the total impedance of the transmission line, Zt is the impedance of the transformer.
N:n shows the ratio of the high voltage transformer (Assume user voltage is 100V).
Efficiency of the power line is also shown at the right side.
I hope this applet will help you understand more about the power transmission line.

OR

Q1.Advantages and disadvantage of HVDC transmission & Application of HVDC transmission?(8

marks)

Ans:- system over HVAC transmission system.

HVDC = High Voltage DC Transmission System
HVAC = High Voltage AC Transmission System
For bulk power transmission over long distances high voltage DC transmission lines are preferred.
Because HVDC transmission system has the following advantages over high voltage AC transmission system.
HVDC Advantages:
1. Cost of transmission is less, since only two conductors are used for transmission.
2. There is no reactive power. So transmission losses are reduced.
3. Due to high voltage transmission, for the same power current is less. So I2R loss is very less.
4. Because of DC transmission, there is no skin effect. So thin conductors can be used. In case of HVAC
transmission, the thick conductors must be used to eliminate skin effect.
5. Two AC systems having different frequencies can be interconnected using HVDC transmission lines. This
is not possible in HVAC transmission system.
6. Installation cost is less. Due to only two conductors and smaller towers required for HVDC.
7. HVDC uses electronic converters. So Protections, fault clearance can be implemented faster than HVAC.
Therefore DC transmission system have improved transient stability.
8. In case of faults, power levels on HVDC system can be controlled electronically (i.e., very fast).
9. Since HVDC requires no charging current and the reactive power, it is preferred in power transmission
through cables.
10. Unlike HVDC transmission system, HVAC induces body currents in the vicinity of the conductors.
11. HVDC transmission does not have any dielectric loss heating problems in the insulation of conductors.
12. HVDC has minimum audible noise as well as minimum radio, TV interference.
13. Due to bipolar transmission the voltage levels are balanced with respect to an earth.
14. DC cables used for transmission are cheaper than AC cables.
15. In HVDC, line charging and electric resonance do not present which leads to high-efficiency.
Disadvantages of HVDC Transmission:
1. High cost converting and inverting equipments are required for HVDC transmission. So it is uneconomical
for low power supply over short distances.
2. Converters control is quite complex.
3. Additional filters are required at various stages of HVDC transmission system. So its lead to high
installation cost.

Q2. Explain how the power handling capacity of AC EHV lines can be calculated? (8 marks)

Ans:- The power transmission capacity of long EHVAC lines is limited by the reactive power consumption of
the line inductance, which exceeds the reactive power generation of the line capacitance at load levels above
surge impedance loading (which is solely determined by the geometrical configuration of the line). Extensive
use of series capacitors may, however, increase the transmission capacity of a line to about 150-200% of surge
impedance loading.

The thermal loading capability is usually not decisive for long AC transmission lines due to limitations in the
reactive power consumption. The emergency loading capability is dependent on maximum allowable conductor
temperature and reactive power constraints. The requirements on emergency loading are determined by the
number of redundant lines. The power transmission capacity of HVDC lines is mainly limited by the maximum
allowable conductor temperature in normal operation. The requirements on emergency loading of HVDC lines
depends on the number of redundant lines and the maximum allowable conductor temperature in emergency
operation. When comparing HVDC and EHVAC lines from a transmission capacity point of view, the HVDC
lines are principally limited only by the thermal loading capability since there are no reactive power contraints.

When calculating the required number of lines in parallel, the following criteria were used:

Emergency operation is defined by the N-1 criterion, which means that one EHVAC line or one HVDC bipole
is out of operation.

• A thermal limit of 1.5 A/mm2 may not exceeded for the line conductors
• A thermal limit of 4 kA may not be exceeded for the AC substation equipment. For the HVDC lines, it is
assumed that each pole of the HVDC line is connected separately to the 420 kV AC system, yielding a thermal
limit of 2.9 GW per pole. • The loading of the EHVAC lines may not exceed the surge impedance loading in
normal operation, or 150% of surge impedance impedance loading in emergency operation.

OR

Q2. Explain Audio Noise and Radio Noise? (8 marks)

Ans:- External sources of noise are received by the antenna. Examples include atmospheric noise,
galactic/cosmic noise, man-made noise, interference “noise” created from other users in an adjacent channel
(adjacent channel interference, ACI) or in the same channel (co-channel interference, CCI), and so on. Internal
noise is generated by components inside the receiver. This noise is the result of random processes such as the
flow of charges in a device, or at a more fundamental level, the thermal vibrations in any component at a
temperature above absolute zero. Radio receivers are made of components that generate noise. All components,
passive (such as resistors), or active (transistorbased circuits) generate noise. The noise in active components
actually limits the useful operating range of the device. We will consider internal noise first, and deal with
external noise received from the antenna later. Consider a microwave amplifier with 10 dB of gain. The
input/output power characteristics is shown in Figure 1. The output power is 10 dB above the input power over
a specific range known as the dynamic range of the amplifier. At high input powers, the output power is limited
by the maximum power the amplifier can deliver, so the characteristic becomes saturated. At low input powers,
the amplifier may also not amplify the signal as expected. For zero input to the amplifier, the amplifier outputs
pure noise at a specific level, known as the noise floor of the amplifier. So, if our input power was say, -100
dBm, the output power should be -90 dBm, but the amplifier is incapable of producing a replica of the input
signal at this power level because it is essentially.

E↵ect of Noise on Radio Systems As discussed earlier, it is the ratio of the signal power to the noise power that
determines the quality of a radio link. Signal-to-noise ratio, or SNR, is defined as SNR = average signal power
average noise power . The SNR often expressed in dB since it is a ratio (SNRdB = 10 log SNR)

Q3. What is surge impedance? Explain surge impedance loading? (8 marks)

Ans;- The surge impedance loading or SIL of a transmission line is the MW loading of a transmission line at
which a natural reactive power balance occurs. The following brief article will explain the concept of SIL.

Transmission lines produce reactive power (Mvar) due to their natural capacitance. The amount of Mvar
produced is dependent on the transmission line’s capacitive reactance (XC) and the voltage (kV) at which the
line is energized. In equation form the Mvar produced is:

Transmission lines also utilize reactive power to support their magnetic fields. The magnetic field strength is
dependent on the magnitude of the current flow in the line and the line’s natural inductive reactance (XL). It
follows then that the amount of Mvar used by a transmission line is a function of the current flow and inductive
reactance. In equation form the Mvar used by a transmission line is:
A transmission line’s surge impedance loading or SIL is simply the MW loading (at a unity power factor) at
which the line’s Mvar usage is equal to the line’s Mvar production. In equation form we can state that the SIL
occurs when:

If we take the square root of both sides of the above equation and then substitute in the formulas for XL (=2fL)
and XC (=1/2fC) we arrive at:

The term in the above equation is by definition the “surge impedance”. The theoretical significance of
the surge impedance is that if a purely resistive load that is equal to the surge impedance were connected to the
end of a transmission line with no resistance, a voltage surge introduced to the sending end of the line would be
absorbed completely at the receiving end. The voltage at the receiving end would have the same magnitude as
the sending end voltage and would have a voltage phase angle that is lagging with respect to the sending end by
an amount equal to the time required to travel across the line from sending to receiving end.

The concept of a surge impedance is more readily applied to telecommunication systems than to power systems.
However, we can extend the concept to the power transferred across a transmission line. The surge impedance
loading or SIL (in MW) is equal to the voltage squared (in kV) divided by the surge impedance (in ohms). In
equation form:

Note in this formula that the SIL is dependent only on the kV the line is energized at and the line’s surge
impedance. The line length is not a factor in the SIL or surge impedance calculations. Therefore the SIL is not
a measure of a transmission line’s power transfer capability as it does not take into account the line’s length nor
does it consider the strength of the local power system.
The value of the SIL to a system operator is realizing that when a line is loaded above its SIL it acts like a shunt
reactor—absorbing Mvar from the system—and when a line is loaded below its SIL it acts like a shunt
capacitor—supplying Mvar to the system.

Figure 1 is a graphic illustration of the concept of SIL. This particular line has a SIL of 450 MW. Therefore if
the line is loaded to 450 MW (with no Mvar) flow, the Mvar produced by the line will exactly balance the Mvar
used by the line.

OR

Q3. What are the advantages of Bundled Conductors? Find the equivalent radius (or) GMR of seven
conductors bundle? (8 marks)

Ans;- On the similar argument for decrease in inductance of line, we can say that the capacitance of the line

increases, as capacitance of line to neutral is given by Now since we have L decreased and
C increased the net SIL of the line also increases automatically, and hence the power transfer capability too.
Hence using bundled conductors is an effective way of increasing SIL, i.e. Surge Impedance Loading.

1. The most important advantage of bundled conductors is its ability to reduce Corona. When power is being
transferred at very high voltages using a single conductor, the voltage gradient around it is pretty high, and
there are high chances of formation of a corona, especially in bad weather conditions. However, using
several conductors nearby instead of one conductor, forming a bundled conductor which leads to reduction
of voltage gradient and hence possibility of corona formation. The increase in critical corona voltage
depends upon the following-
o Number of conductors in the group,
o Clearance between them, and
o The distance between the groups forming separate phases.
It has been found out that the optimum spacing between the conductors in a group is of the order of 8-10
times the diameter of each conductor, irrespective of the number of conductors in the bundle.
2. Reduction is formation of corona leads to less power loss in corona and hence improved transmission
efficiency of the line.
3. Reduction in communication line interference due to reduction in corona.
4. The ampacity i.e. the current carrying capacity of bundled conductors is much increased in comparison to
single large conductor owing to reduced skin effect.
5. As the bundled conductors have more effective surface area exposed to air, it has better and efficient cooling
and hence better performance compared to a single conductor.
The geometric mean radius (GMR) of Seven-conductor bundle is given by

(1.53)
where Ds is the GMR of conductor. The GMR for three-conductor and four-conductor bundles are given
respectively by
 (1.54)

(1.55)

The inductance of the bundled conductor is then given by

(1.56)
where n=2,3 ....

where the geometric mean distance is calculated assuming that the center of a round conductor is the same as
that of the center of the bundle.

Fig. 1.10 Bundled conductors: (a) 2-conductor, (b) 3-conductor and (c) 4-conductor bundles

Q4. What is Corona? Explain critical disruptive voltage and critical visual voltage? (8 marks)

Ans:- The phenomenon of corona plays an important role in the design of an overhead transmission line.
Therefore, it is profitable to consider the following terms much used in the analysis of corona effects:

(i) Critical disruptive voltage

It is the minimum phase-neutral voltage at which corona occurs.

Consider two conductors of radii r cm and spaced d cm apart. If V is the phase-neutral potential,

then potential gradient at the conductor surface is given by:

g =[V/ r loge (d/r)] volts / cm

In order that corona is formed, the value of g must be made equal to the breakdown strength of air. The
breakdown strength of air at 76 cm pressure and temperature of 25ºC is 30 kV/cm (max) or 21·2 kV/cm (r.m.s.)
and is denoted by go. If Vc is the phase-neutral potential required under these conditions, then,

go =[Vc/ r loge (d/r)] volts / cm

where go = breakdown strength of air at 76 cm of mercury and 25ºC = 30 kV/cm (max) or 21·2 kV/cm (r.m.s.)
∴ Critical disruptive voltage, Vc = go r loge d/r

The above expression for disruptive voltage is under standard conditions i.e., at 76 cm of Hg and
25ºC. However, if these conditions vary, the air density also changes, thus altering the value of go.
 The value of go is directly proportional to air density. Thus the breakdown strength of air at a barometric
pressure of b cm of mercury and temperature of tºC becomes δ go where

δ = air density factor = 3.92b / 273 + t

Under standard conditions, the value of δ = 1.
∴ Critical disruptive voltage ,V c = go δ r loge d/r

Correction must also be made for the surface condition of the conductor. This is accounted for by multiplying
the above expression by irregularity factor mo.
∴ Critical disruptive voltage, Vc = mo go δ r loge d/r …. kV/phase
where

mo = 1 for polished conductors

= 0·98 to 0·92 for dirty conductors

= 0·87 to 0·8 for stranded conductors

(ii) Visual critical voltage

It is the minimum phase-neutral voltage at which corona glow appears all along the line conductors.

It has been seen that in case of parallel conductors, the corona glow does not begin at the disruptive voltage Vc
but at a higher voltage Vv , called visual critical voltage. The phase-neutral effective value of visual critical
voltage is given by the following empirical formula :where mv is another irregularity factor having a value of
1·0 for polished conductors and 0·72 to 0·82 for rough conductors.

OR

Q4. What is the necessity of tap changing transformer? Describe its types in power system? (8 marks)

Ans;- The change of voltage is affected by changing the numbers of turns of the transformer provided with taps.
For sufficiently close control of voltage, taps are usually provided on the high voltage windings of the
transformer. There are two types of tap-changing transformers.

1. Off-load tap changing transformer

2. On-load tap changing transformer

Off-load tap-changing transformer

In this method, the transformer is disconnected from the main supply when the tap setting is to be changed. The
tap setting is usually done manually. The off load tap changing transformer is shown in the figure below
 On-load tap-changing transformer
In order that the supply may not be interrupted, on-load tap changing transformer are sued. Such a transformer
is known as a tap-changing under load transformer. While tapping, two essential conditions are to be fulfilled.

 The load circuit should not be broken to avoid arcing and prevent the damage of contacts.
 No parts of the windings should be short–circuited while adjusting the tap.

The tap changing employing a center tapped reactor R show in the

figure above. Here S is the diverter switch, and 1, 2, 3 are selector switch. The transformer is in operation with
switches 1 and S closed. To change to tap 2, switch S is opened, and 2 is closed. Switch 1 is then opened, and S
closed to complete the tap change. It is to be noted that the diverter switch operates on load, and no current
flows in the selector switches during tap changing. During the tap change only half of the reactance .It is to be
noted that the diverter switch operates on load, and no current flows in the selector switches during tap
changing. During the tap change, only half of the reactance which limits the current is connected in the circuit.

Q5. (i) A load of 10 MW, 0.6 PF lag is connected to a 11 kV bus bar? Find the rating of shunt capacitor
for improving the PF to 0.9 lag? (4 marks)

Ans:- Given Synchronous generator of 500 MW, 21 kV, 50 Hz, 3-f, 2-pole P.F = 0.9, Moment of inertia M
27.5 103 = kg-m2 Inertia constant H = ?

Generator rating in MVA G. 500 555.56 cos P 0 9 MW MVA f = N 3000 2 120 50 pole == = 120 f rpm Stored
K.E 2 2 1 2 1 60 M M 2 N 2 w p = = b l 27.5, 10 2 1 60 2, 3000 MJ 3 = p b l = 1357.07 MJ Inertia constant H
Rating of Generator(MVA) Stored K.E = H . . 555 56 1357 07 = = 2.44 sec
(ii) Find the rating of shunt capacitor for charging the PF from 0.8 lag to 0.8 lead for a load of 5MW? (4
marks)

Ans:- Power angle for salient pole alternator is given by tand cos sin V I R V IX t a a t aq f f = Since the
alternator is delivering at rated kVA rated voltage Ia = 1 pu Vt = 1 pu f = 0c sinf = = 0 1 , cosf Xq = = 1 pu pu ,
1.2 Xd tand = 45Sec

OR

Q5. Describe Thyristorised static VAR compensation- TCR,FC-TCR and TCS-TCR in detail? (8 marks)

Ans;- In an electric power transmission system, a thyristor-controlled reactor (TCR) is a reactance connected in
series with a bidirectional thyristor valve. The thyristor valve is phase-controlled, which allows the value of
delivered reactive power to be adjusted to meet varying system conditions. Thyristor-controlled reactors can be
used for limiting voltage rises on lightly loaded transmission lines. Another device which used to be used for
this purpose is a magnetically controlled reactor (MCR), a type of magnetic amplifier otherwise known as
a transductor.
In parallel with series connected reactance and thyristor valve, there may also be a capacitor bank, which may
be permanently connected or which may use mechanical or thyristor switching. The combination is called
a static VAR compensator.
A thyristor controlled reactor is usually a three-phase assembly, normally connected in a delta arrangement to
provide partial cancellation of Harmonics. Often the main TCR reactor is split into two halves, with the
thyristor valve connected between the two halves. This protects the vulnerable thyristor valve from damage due
to flashovers, lightning strikes etc.

Operating principles
The current in the TCR is varied from maximum (determined by the connection voltage and the inductance of
the reactor) to almost zero by varying the "Firing Delay Angle", α. α is defined as the delay angle from the point
at which the voltage becomes positive to the point at which the thyristor valve is turned on and current starts to
flow.
Voltage and current waveforms in a TCR
Maximum current is obtained when α is 90°, at which point the TCR is said to be in "full conduction" and the
rms current is given by
Vsvc is the rms value of the line-to-line busbar voltage to which the SVC is connected
Ltcr is the total TCR inductance per phase
The current lags 90° behind the voltage in accordance with classical AC circuit theory. As α increases above
90°, up to a maximum of 180°, the current decreases and becomes discontinuous and non-sinusoidal. The TCR
current, as a function of time, is then given by:
A TCR comprises two main items of equipment: the reactor itself, which is usually air-cored (although iron-
cored reactors are possible) and the thyristor valve. Depending on the system voltage, an intermediate
power transformer may be required to step up from the voltage handled by the thyristors to the transmission
system voltage.
Thyristor valve
The thyristor valve typically consists of 5-20 inverse-parallel-connected pairs of Thyristors connected in series.
The inverse-parallel connection is needed because most commercially available thyristors can conduct current
in only one direction. The series connection is needed because the maximum voltage rating of commercially
available thyristors (up to approximately 8.5kV) is insufficient for the voltage at which the TCR is connected.
For some low-voltage applications, it may be possible to avoid the series-connection of thyristors; in such cases
the thyristor valve is simply an inverse-parallel connection of two thyristors.

A TCR Thyristor Valve (one phase)

TCR Thyristor valve voltage and current waveforms
In addition to the thyristors themselves, each inverse-parallel pair of thyristors has a Resistor - Capacitor circuit
connected across it, to force the voltage across the valve to divide uniformly amongst the thyristors and to damp
the "commutation overshoot" which occurs when the valve turns off.
Harmonics
A TCR operating with α > 90° generates substantial amounts of harmonic currents, particularly at 3rd, 5th and
7th harmonics. By connecting the TCR in delta, the harmonic currents of order 3n ("Triple harmonics") flow
only around the delta and do not escape into the connected AC system. However, the 5th and 7th harmonics
(and to a lesser extent 11th, 13th, 17th etc.) must be filtered in order to prevent excessive voltage distortion on
the AC network. This is usually accomplished by connecting Harmonic Filters in parallel with the TCR. The
filters provide capacitive reactive power which partly offsets the inductive reactive power provided by the TCR.